The Bloody Child
by zElliexmagic
Summary: Haunted by her past, Lucy tries to make up for what had happened, but it's eating her from the inside out. What happens if a certain pink haired boy comes along and saves her physically and mentally? NaLu
1. Prologue

**HAPPY HALLOWEEN! I hope you enjoy this! I'm not good with horror (I don't even like horror) so I hope this turns out okay…**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail**

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The Bloody Child (Prologue)

The rain wasn't heavy; it was just light, without thunder, and pitter-pattered against the long pathway. However, Lucy had been walking in it long enough to be soaked to the bone. She pulled her grey, soaked hoodie tighter around her face as the rain, like tears, slipped down her cheeks. Her legs were freezing, which was probably because she was in a short skirt; a careless mistake on her part. It was an odd combination to be in a short skirt with a thick hoodie, but she didn't care and no one was around for miles.

When Lucy reached the center of a small wooden bridge, she looked left, down at the pond flowing beneath her. She leaned on the wooded rails and looked down at the clear water. From a distance, one would say that she was admiring the beautiful lily pads on the surface, but that's not what had her attention.

Figures – no, _bodies_ was the correct word – were frozen in movement, their eyes wide and jaws dropped as far as they'd go as they were staring, shocked at the devil himself before they died. Their skin was partially eaten away thanks to the fish and you could see moss growing on their clothes that was still on their snow white skin.

There was a certain figure Lucy was looking at. Every time she came here, she could never bring herself to keep going and never not look over the bridge. The person was female, in a beautiful pink dress with her mouth open in a large oval and eyes so wide, they were almost a full circle. She had one arm out stretched in front of her, as if reaching for a child, but didn't make it before she died.

She could hear the soulless voices of the people, crying out to her. Most were quietly screaming in the background, but some remained faint in the air and Lucy could hear their voices as if they were right behind her, but she had turned around many times in the past and nobody was ever there.

"Lucy…Lucy…Lu…cy…"

That was what they said: her name. They were calling out to her…and after all these years, Lucy could never figure out what they wanted: a warning? A desperate plea to save them? Fear of what will happen? Or simply wanting her to come to them so they could hold her? It was not hard to figure out that every carcass in the water loved Lucy. They loved her very much…

Then she heard it: a feminine voice. A voice Lucy knew all too well. A soulless voice that she could spot almost immediately. The voice cried out her name and Lucy looked down at the woman again, the body who the voice belonged to.

Slowly, she reached out a hand toward the woman, her hand just simply dangled in the air, almost sad that she couldn't reach her.

The water suddenly moved rapidly and Lucy found herself unwilling to pull back as a large fish, with razor sharp teeth jumped out of the water toward her hand with his mouth open, snapping wildly. Lucy's face remained emotionless as she watched the teeth – sharp and long, like daggers – jump for her hand…

Then…the fish missed…

The fish then dove back into the water, as his friends came over to join him, jumping for her hand again which was still in one piece, not even touched. They missed…again and again and again…

The fish, the ones eating the flesh off the carcasses, missed her hand again and again, looking as though they would bite her hand off in one fell swoop, but missed and Lucy knew that it was on purpose.

"…Heartfilia Heiress…"

It was only once in a while the voices would call her that…and that was exactly why the fish and any other ghost or haunting creature on the property couldn't touch her…because she was the heiress and they loved her. They couldn't kill her.

Except for one person – one soulless, dead ghost, resembling exactly like a human who hated her…he could kill her…and he has attempted to so many times, Lucy has lost count.

But she couldn't help it…she had to keep coming back over and over again. She couldn't help it. She wasn't cursed and didn't even _have_ to come back…but she just had to…

Bringing her cold hand back up to her chest to warm it up (though it would do no good: the hoodie was soaked), the killer fish stopped jumping and swam away, disappearing under the pile of bodies.

The soulless voices continued to call out to her…

However, Lucy wasn't scared – she never was…she's done this so many times…it was only at the end, her destination, when she grew afraid.

Finally, she walked the rest of the way across the bridge, the voices fading behind her, but walking through the gardens was another adventure: souls wandered around the large area. They were ghosts, looking like white floating orbs – souls – with white, starless dust shimmering around them. Lucy pitied them…they always look so lonely.

As Lucy watched them and continued to walk, hugging her shivering body against the soaked hoodie, the souls saw her and came crowding around her. She stopped walking and glanced around at them all. The dust formed transparent white faces that stared at Lucy soullessly, whispering her name; the voices were back.

"Lucy…Lucy…."

More dust formed transparent hands that reached out to her, brushing her clothes, skin, and hair. Lucy bit her lip, wanting to say something but if she did, she knew it wouldn't reach them.

Slowly walking forward again, wanting to get by but not wanting to walk through them, the ghosts created an opening for her, which she took and didn't look behind her as the souls followed her.

Lucy had finally reached her destination after the gardens. The Heartfilia Estate front doors were so big, she found them intimidating as she pressed her palm to it, pushing it open. The ghosts seemed to scream, fleeing from Lucy and the door like they were the devil.

Lucy didn't turn or flinch at the noise and movement behind her. It was normal. It happened every Saturday when she did this.

As the door closed behind her, Lucy pushed off her wet hoodie from her head, revealing her drenched, golden locks, and turned the lights on. It was dead quiet as Lucy left the foyer and into one of the large dining rooms. Cautiously, she looked left and right, her shoes squeaking against the ground made her vulnerable and her breath quickened as her heart raced.

Now, was when she was scared…it was always at this point.

The silence was unbearable and Lucy found herself trembling as she walked around the halls, looking for the one ghost who tried to kill her each time she came in.

It was way too silent, he was going to pop out of nowhere anytime soon…and he always carried a gun with him, the very same weapon that ended his life. She had to be very careful or she would be shot…again. Lucy would very few times come out of the Heartfilia Estate unscathed. After her shower at night, she would see bad marks that looked like they would scar on her back and wrists, but as she cleaned the wounds, she'd always cry, but it was never because of the pain.

However, the soulless, dead being would usually say a few words before he would try to kill her…which made her lucky in some way…

When there was still no sign of him, Lucy got worried. Either he knew she was here and had something planned or he didn't know at all.

No, he knew she was here…she knew he did…there was no way he couldn't know…

After a few more moments of silence, Lucy started calling out his name, but he still didn't answer…at least for a little while longer.

"Hello Lucy."

Lucy gasped, freezing before she slowly turned around, her teeth chattered, but it wasn't because she was wet and cold.

There stood a tall man in a grey suit with a gun in his hands. He gave off a tremendous cold vibe and his suit was torn and covered in blood. His eyes were completely white; no pupils at all. There were a few scars on his face and his dirty blonde hair was ratted and knotted. This ghost, one that took the form of a human, but his white eyes showed that he wasn't, couldn't leave the Heartfilia Mansion. He couldn't exit any of the doors to the outside world. He could only wander around the halls, waiting for Lucy to walk through the doors every Saturday.

Lucy's eyes teared up at the sight of him. Half of those tears were filled with remorse and the other half was fear. "D-Daddy…"

Jude Heartfilia's face remained emotionless as Lucy cried.

"I…I can't tell you how many times I'm sorry…" That was always the first thing Lucy said each time she came here…and each time she apologized, her dead father never forgave her. He tried to get revenge by killing her, but he has failed each time.

"It's all your fault…you were never a daughter of mine," that was always his reply. From here, the arguments and conversations varied before he tried to kill her as she ran.

"I-I know," Lucy sniffed and wiped her nose with her wet wrist. The hot tears ran down, blending in with the rain. "I'm so sorry, Daddy. I-I want…you to forgive me…even though I don't deserve your forgiveness. W-what can I do to make it up to you?"

That was a bad question and Lucy regretted it as soon as it left her mouth.

"How you could make it up to me?" He repeated her question before answering, "with your life of course."

Lucy gasped in fear before turning and sprinting down the hallway.

There was a gunfire and Lucy swore she felt the bullet barely graze her hair as she turned a corner to run down another hallway.

"Get back here, Lucy! You must be punished for your sins!"

"No!" Lucy sobbed, still running though she could hear her father's footsteps behind her. "I don't want to die! Momma wouldn't have wanted me to die!"

"You don't know what your mother thinks! You don't have a right to mention her!"

Sobbing, Lucy turned another corner as another gunfire sounded through the air. It hit a mirror – even though it was already shattered out of old age and other chases like this – and the sound caused Lucy to let out a frightening scream.

Taking a quick turn and then another one, Lucy pulled herself into the bathroom and locked the door. She shut the lights off behind her to make it look like no one was in there and ducked behind the sink which hid her well thanks to the cabinets, but she had to squeeze her way next to the toilet, which stunk and was overflowing. Gross! However, Lucy didn't care about that right now. She could shower when she gets home – no, _if_ she gets home. One time, she barely got out of here alive. She was shot in the leg, hip, and could barely crawl, but she was somehow able to escape the mansion.

Pressing her hands against her mouth to silence her panting and sobbing, Lucy listened to her dead father's footsteps slowly walk around the room, just outside the bathroom, looking for her.

"Come on now, Lucy," She could hear his voice just outside the door. "You can't hide from me; I'm your father…I know how you think."

More tears ran down her terrified face as the door opened and the lights turned on. She held her breath as she watched his footsteps stop in front of her and she slowly looked up at him. The gun was aimed at her head and the barrel clicked into place and Lucy squeaked in fear.

"You ask what you could do to atone for your crime, but then you run away…You're pathetic…and a coward…and selfish…"

" _I know,_ " She wanted to say, but when she opened her mouth, nothing came out. If only she was closer to the front door!

"I'll see you in hell," and he pulled the trigger.

The bullet didn't find its mark. Lucy had grabbed her father's hand, shoving it to the left to hit the toilet just barely in time. She launched herself at him making him tumble and hit his head against the wall. It didn't hurt him though, because he was dead and could feel no pain.

"Arg! Let go of me!"

Lucy was still crying as she shoved him back, but all she needed as a distraction and when she got it, she bolted, running out the bathroom door toward the front door, zooming through hallway and hallway.

*Bang!*

"Gah!" Lucy pressed a hand against her shoulder as immense pain spread through it quickly. She kept on running through the halls, ignoring the wetness, that she's sure wasn't rainwater, under her hand.

Another gunfire sounded, but Lucy turned the corner just in time as it hit the wall.

" _There's the door!_ "

Sprinting as fast as she could, she reached the door, opening it and slamming it shut behind her as her dead father shouted insulting and promising threats. Lucy never paid attention to them though.

She didn't waste a second, she sprinted, not giving the ghosts enough time to crowd around her and not listening to the whispers on the bridge. She didn't want to be here a second more; she just wanted to be home.

The tears were still running and it was still raining as she ran and she didn't stop until she reached her house.

As her front door clicked shut behind her, she sunk to the ground, crying her eyes out and hugging her throbbing shoulder.

She regretted going…she always regretted going afterwards, wounds or not…but it didn't matter, she'll be going back next weekend…she just couldn't stop…

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 **I'll probably post each chapter randomly…yes, I know I only said I'd do two series, but what the heck? You only live once. XD**

 **-zEllie**


	2. Chapter 1

**I was going to post Red Riding Hood before this, but I have no idea where to go with it so I figured I'd write this to get my creative juices flowing some more before that.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail**

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The Bloody Child (Ch. 1)

"Guys…please knock it off," Levy groaned as the three idiotic boys, Natsu, Gajeel, and Gray, bickered and argued all the way to Juvia's house at the end of the road.

She, Juvia, and Wendy had to endure their idiotic friends for a few hours. Gajeel and Levy and Gray and Juvia were on a double date and everything had done smoothly until Natsu and his cousin, Wendy, showed up.

Everyone was happy to see Wendy of course, but Natsu…well, not to much. Usually, Gajeel and Gray get along just fine. Maybe there are a few arguments here and there, but no fistfights. It was only when Natsu showed up when everything was a chaotic mess. Natsu would throw in an insult every once in a while and he'd usually throw the first punch unless Gajeel and Gray were too irritated with them and do it first.

It seems Levy's voice fell on deaf ears as she and Wendy turned around to see the three now throwing punches instead of arguing.

"Seriously?" Levy face palmed.

"I'm sorry about this," Wendy bit her lip. "It was me that pointed out to Natsu that you guys were in the movie theater. This is my fault; I should've known this would happen."

Levy blinked, surprised, before turning to look at her, "No, Wendy! It's okay! Natsu just needs to…well, you know."

Wendy nodded, not entirely convinced, before turning around in circles, "Where's Juvia?"

"Where do you think?"

Wendy then looked forward, letting her breath out in a huff, "oh…I guess I should've seen that coming."

Juvia was currently holding Gray's shirt, which he had flung off, and cheering him on on the sidelines.

"I wish Erza was here," Wendy mumbled, giving Levy an idea.

The bookworm snickered before turning to shout, "Hey Erza! Come over here!"

And just like that, the three boys stood up straight like soldiers, saluting.

"Wow, that actually worked," the young blue haired girl commented.

Levy snickered as the boys complained, but luckily, didn't start another brawl. "What were you guys fighting about just now?"

"Salamander here thinks I'm more cowardly than him!" Gajeel pointed rudely like a child blaming his brother for stealing candy.

"That's because you are!"

"I am not!"

"Then why'd you run away from Laxus when you challenged him to a fight?!"

"I didn't run away! I knew I wasn't going to win to I left to train!"

"So you admit defeat?"

"No!"

"How did you get dragged into this, Gray?" Wendy asked, timidly.  
"Natsu thinks he's braver than the two of us combined," he answered before snickering, "which is a total lie because he's afraid…" He leaned over, laughing. Gray could barely finish his sentence as his cackling echoed through Magnolia. "O-o-of…o-of t-…t-trains! Ha! Ha! Ha!"

"I am not!"

"You're a liar, Salamander!" Gajeel joined in the laughter.

Natsu growled, "Everyone is afraid of something! I'm afraid of trains! So what?! I still get onto trains! Therefore, I'm braver than you!"

They stopped their laughter before Gray spoke up, "how does that prove you're braver than us, Flame Brain?! We get onto trains no problem!"

"Great job, Levy," Levy spoke to herself as she shook her head and sighed, "You got them fighting again."

Wendy giggled.

"I can bet you all I have the guts enough to eat Erza's strawberry cake in front of her!"

They all, even the girls, shivered.

"That's not being brave because you've done that before!" Gajeel said, "If you wanna prove your bravery, Salamander, you have to do something you've never ever done before!"

Natsu smirked, "and whichever one of us turns our backs to the dare is chicken!"

Gray cracked his knuckles, "You're on Magma Breath, Metal Head!"

"This isn't going to be good…" Levy was biting her lip.

"Come on, Gray! You got this!" Juvia exclaimed with a sparkle in her eyes.

"Um…" Natsu tapped his chin, "we've never egged Porlyusica's house before! Let's do that!"

"That's too simple!" Gajeel complained.

Gray paused before speaking up, "How about up at the Heartfilia Estate?"

Natsu, Gajeel, Wendy, Levy, and Juvia blinked at him confusingly. "You talking about the big abandoned mansion with the Bloody Child Legend?" Gajeel questioned.

"Yeah, as we all wait outside, each of us takes turns staying inside the mansion for half an hour. Whichever one of leaves the mansion beforehand loses! We keep going around like that until two of us loses."

"Gihihi!" Gajeel smirked, "The legend says Jude Heartfilia's ghost roams through the halls, killing anyone to enters. I guess we'll see who dies first!"

"Okay! Time out!" Levy exclaimed, flapping her arms and gaining the guys' attention, "This is a little too far! Dares are great, but no one said anything about dying!"

"That's the drive to see which one of us are the most cowardly," Gray said. "Should we go in alphabetical order?" He and Natsu turned to Gajeel.

"I hate you both."

"Does that mean you're chicken, Metal Head?"

"No! I'll do it!"

"Alrighty then! To the Heartfilia Estate we go!"

"Right now?!" Levy exclaimed as the idiotic boys stomped toward the forest.

"Why not tomorrow?!" Juvia's voice rose, as the three blue haired girls followed.

"I'm already scared," Wendy mumbled, hugging herself tightly.

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The Heartfilia Estate isn't far from Magnolia; it's only half a mile into the forest. The problem is, the estate is so big, it'll feel like hours before you reach the mansion. It was pretty late in the evening when they headed out into the woods, but now the sun is going down. The girls feared they'd be walking home in the dark…that is if they could tear the boys away from the challenging dare that none of them intend to lose at.

It seemed like an eternity before the teenagers reached a pond with a wooden bridge going over it. None of them realized they were on the estate until that point because all the gardens had weeds and trees growing all over, blending in with the forest.

However, it was easy to get there because oddly, there was a path leading straight toward the mansion…as if someone had walked to and fro over and over again…

"Hey guys…I think we're here," Natsu said as he approached the bridge, but didn't cross. "Uh…I can't tell if the bridge is stable…we might have to go around."

"Looks stable enough," Gajeel said as he looked over it.

"Is he volunteering?" Juvia smirked.

"Yes, he is!" Gray shouted as he shoved him past Natsu onto the bridge. "He's first anyway!"

"Hey! Watch it-" They all grew silent as the wooden beams creaked and crackled beneath the tall, bulky man. Gajeel gulped and shifted his bodyweight to see if he'd hear more creaks, but it was silent.

Levy let out the breath she was holding and approached the bottom of the bridge. "Be careful, Gajeel."

"I'll be fine. It's not like I'm going to drown if I fall in," he replied as he took a few more shaky steps before trusting the boards and walking normally across it to the other side. "I'd come across one at a time and I think we'll be okay."

"I'll go next," Levy said as she took a few nervous steps onto the bridge. When she made it to the middle, the bridge creaked and she clung to the railing for support.

"Levy…" Gajeel's voice was low with concern.

"I'm fine! I'm fine!"

"You're halfway there!" Wendy supported, "You can do it!"

Taking a deep breath, Levy was about to push off the rail, but not before glancing down at the water and gasping. "Woah! Guys! Look in the water-"

A large crack made itself known. The railing Levy was leaning against gave out and she stumbled into the water with a scream and a splash.

"Levy!"

Gajeel ran back across the bridge, forgetting the reason why they were crossing cautiously as everyone ran to the shore. That was when they saw what Levy was looking at:

Bodies. Cold, dead bodies with petrified expressions on their faces. The hollow in their eyes made even Gray shiver as they all stared.

" _Is this…_ " Natsu couldn't tear his eyes away, " _The Bloody Child Legend?..._ "

As if to answer his question and Levy surfaced and shouted that she was okay, she screamed as she was sucked back in. A body, that was supposed to be dead, reached up and grabbed her leg.

"Levy!"

They couldn't do anything in fear of getting pulled in themselves, but at the same time, if they didn't do anything, she'd die! The dead bodies moved in the water, but remained frozen in their position. Levy frantically looked around at the corpses circling her as she clawed at the bone-chilling, cold hand grasping her ankle. If she couldn't break free from the corpses' grasps, she'll drown!...She was so scared…

As if it couldn't get any worse, there were fish in the water. And not just any normal fish, but these fish were _huge!_ Far larger than any pond fish should be! And these fish had razor sharp teeth that were the size of kitchen knives! Before Levy knew she was in bigger trouble than she thought, the fish swarmed around her and one of them bit down on her wrist. She could feel the teeth going through her skin and out the other side. It _hurt_ …she screamed underwater as blood gushed out. She was going to die!

"Levy!" Screw it! Gajeel was jumping in! There was no way he was going to stand there and do nothing as his girl was being eaten alive and drowning. If she was going to die, he was going with her!

However, before he did so, he was interrupted.

Natsu, witnessing everything happening, suddenly saw nothing but gold. It took him a moment to realize someone had just ran by him…and jumped into the water…

The blonde girl dove underwater toward Levy. When she reached her, not only did she wrap her in her arms, but her legs as well. She hugged Levy to her like she'd die if she let go…and she probably would, but that meant the strange blonde would die as well!

And just like that, everything was calm.

The corpses froze, falling back into their frozen positions at the bottom of the lake. The fish continued to look like they'd bite them, but they missed every time.

"Lucy….Lu…cy….Lucy…"

Natsu flipped his head left and right. Where were those sudden whispers coming from?! And why were they chanting, "Lucy" under their breaths?! He opened his mouth to ask, but no one was paying attention. They were staring intently at the scene, which Natsu turned back to.

The blonde swam back up to the surface, unwrapping her legs around Levy, but keep her arms in place as they met oxygen.

Levy gasped for breath, coughing and hacking. Neither girls moved until the bookworm was breathing properly again.

"Are you okay?!"

Natsu shivered; her voice was like a melody. He found himself oddly attracted to it, which is something he's never experienced before, but he's heard all about that stuff along with icky romance from Cana and Mira. So it's not like he didn't know what that sudden feeling was. There were only two questions though:

Who the heck is this blonde chick and what the heck just happened?

Levy flinched, not sure how to answer that question her rescuer asked her, but the blonde didn't wait for an answer:

"Hold onto me and don't let go," she ordered and Levy nodded, doing as she was told. The moment they were at the shore, the blonde handed Levy to Gajeel before getting up out of the water herself.

"Ow…" Levy winced as she sat on the ground next to her boyfriend.

"Are you okay?!" Gajeel worriedly looked over her and sucked in a breath as the noticed the bad bite marks: one on her leg, one on her wrist, and one on her forearm.

Juvia and Wendy crowded around her, asking about her wellbeing. Gray simply stared, still trying to figure out what exactly happened. Natsu was staring intently at the girl who rescued Levy, but luckily the blonde didn't notice because she was too busy looking over Juvia's shoulder at the wounds.

"They look deep," Wendy said, biting her lip. She was so scared right now, but relieved Levy wasn't killed.

Gajeel bit his lip, hard. Dang it! He felt so useless standing their doing nothing! He was trying to find a branch to pull her in, but the blonde got to her first! He felt so pathetic!

"It's throbbing," Levy mumbled.

"Those fish are poisonous."

Eyes turned to the soaking wet blonde and she pushed her wet bangs back. "Don't worry though. The poison won't do anything for about another day or so before it enters your bloodstream." She then smiled kindly at them all, "Why don't you all come to my apartment. It's in Magnolia. I have supplies to treat your friend's wounds."

When no one answered, she turned to Levy and held out her hand, "and I'm sure you're hungry. I'll cook you all dinner too."

Trusting her hero quickly, Levy smiled and took her hand, "okay. Let's go."

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 **I'm such a hypocrite writing a horror story. I wrote a lame one one time and gave myself nightmares the following night…I know, so lame. It doesn't take much to scare me. I hope you enjoyed and Red Riding Hood will be up next.**

 **-zEllie**


	3. Chapter 2

**So, yeah bro, here you go. Here is the second chapter of "Bloody Child" that you've been** _ **begging**_ **me to write! I know you want "Beauty and the Beast" too so I'll work on that eventually. I have other followers who want other stuff so let me do each story one at a time. *sighs* dang brothers…just kidding! Love you, bro! XD**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail**

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The Bloody Child (Ch. 2)

Levy was as good as new in no time. Her wounds were wrapped in bandages and she helped the still-mysterious blonde out in the kitchen as they prepared dinner. When they all sat down at the table, she spoke up. It seems that she and her rescuer bonded while cooking together.

"You never exactly told us your name," Levy said.

"Oh! I'm sorry!" Her laugh made Natsu shiver again. "My name is Lucy…Lucy Ashley."

Natsu raised an eyebrow, " _Lucy? That's the name the voices were chanting._ "

Levy smiled and introduced herself and everyone in turn. Everyone was quiet, either because the mysterious girl or because they still processing what had happened at the estate. Most of Natsu's friends were probably doing the latter, but something was just off about their new friend…at least that's what he was wondering.

Lucy seemed to note everyone's silence, but she didn't say anything on it. Instead, she asked suspiciously, "what were you all doing up at the Heartfilia Estate?"

It was Gray who spoke, "a dare."

"A dare?" Lucy repeated, taking a bite of food and blinking, "so you dared Levy here to jump in the pond? You know there are many ponds in Magnolia. Why the Heartfilia Estate?"

"We didn't dare Levy to jump in the pond," Gajeel grumpily replied. Levy, sitting next to him, rubbed his back soothingly, knowing that he blamed himself for her downfall. "The three of us boys dared each other to lock ourselves in the Heartfilia Manor for half an hour each to find out which of us were bravest. The bridge railing gave out underneath Shrimp's weight and she fell in."

" _She seems surprised_ ," Natsu noted to himself, wondering why he was so suspicious of this girl. She wasn't any dangerous.

"…Are you guys from around here? You _do_ know about the Bloody Child Legend, right?" Lucy asked.

"Yeah of course," Juvia replied. "If we didn't know then we wouldn't be having the dare up there."

Natsu scoffed suddenly and Lucy looked at him. He found himself melting under her chocolate eyes. It was the first time she looked at him (except when Levy introduced him, but her eyes just flashed to him and then away to Wendy, sitting next to him. It didn't give him enough time to react), and he felt petrified for some reason. " _When will the attraction go away?_ " He asked himself. He always thought that attraction was a spontaneous thing; a spur of the moment that didn't last long.

"Is something wrong?" Lucy sweetly asked him; he melted again.

"The Bloody Child Legend in baloney!" Despite his insides turning to goo, Natsu's voice didn't waver and he crossed his arms. He wasn't trying to come off rude, but sure with his mind made up.

Lucy seemed surprised at his comment as well, maybe even more surprised than earlier.

Gray sighed, "The Bloody Child Legend _is_ true, Flame Brain! Are you out of your mind?!"

Lucy was still surprised and Levy leaned over to her to say, "they argue about this all the time."

Lucy's wide eyes were still on Natsu.

Natsu scoffed again, "the legend isn't true. The Heartfilia Estate isn't haunted with Jude Heartfilia's ghost. There's no Bloody Child."

"It's abandoned."

"That doesn't make it haunted."

"I think there _is_ a Bloody Child actually," Levy spoke up. "He's never been found. For all we know, he's still alive."

"Or the legend isn't true at all," Natsu tried to back up his point.

"If the legend is true," Wendy spoke for the first time that night, "Doesn't that mean the Bloody Child has to spill his blood at the feet of the person he wronged in the mansion and then the world would be a better place?"

Better place is right. Not only Fiore, but all of Ishgar is not as green as it used to be and more dead than alive. It's been like that for seven long years ever since the legend came into existence. Because of how bitter the world is, most people believe the legend is true. However, Natsu was not one of these people.

"It's not true!" He exclaimed, "The world is like this because that's just the way it is. One small lie can't turn the world like this."

"You saying you don't remember the happier, brighter times, Salamander?"

"Of course I remember, but why and how could one ten-year-old child murder his entire family during Christmas and then walk out of the house covered in blood, crying? That's totally morbid and no child will ever do that!"

"Gosh, Natsu! Are you blind?!" Gray shouted, "did you _see_ the _bodies_ in that pond?! The legend is true! That's the _entire_ Heartfilia family!"

Natsu stayed silent for a moment. If he mentioned the whispers, it would be going against him so he kept quiet.

"What do _you_ think about the Bloody Child Legend, Lucy?" Juvia asked, causing everyone to turn to the blonde.

"I believe the legend is true," the blonde said and then she pointed at Natsu with her fork. "However, I'm with him as well. No child is going to kill her entire family on Christmas. I believe The Bloody Child is innocent. I believe that someone uninvited came in and killed the Heartfilia family and the Bloody Child was the only survivor."

Natsu raised his eyebrows, " ' _Her_ ' _? The legend always referred to the Bloody Child as a boy._ " It seemed no one else caught that except him.

"You have a point," Wendy nodded in agreement, "but who would do such a terrible thing?"

Lucy shrugged.

"What were _you_ doing at the Heartfilia Estate?" Natsu asked, still suspicious of her. There was just something _off_.

"Yeah," Gray agreed, turning to her, "I was wondering the same thing."

"Oh me? I'm an archeologist," she replied casually, causing Natsu's suspicion to ware off. "I want to know more about the legend so I'm up there a lot. I've fallen in the pond before so that's why I have the medicine for the poison."

"So what's with the bodies in the pond?" Juvia asked.

Lucy raised her eyebrows, but answered, "The corpses, like zombies, were screaming 'I'm bloodthirsty' and drowned themselves in the pond."

"How do you know this?" Gajeel asked.

Lucy blinked, "it's in the legend; everyone knows…you guys _are_ from Magnolia right?"  
"Yeah, we are."

"Hmm. You guys don't get out often," she giggled her musical laugh.

"I guess we don't," Levy giggled with her. "We all _are_ mostly in the clubhouse!"

"What about the whispering?" Natsu asked.

Lucy froze, turning to him with a shocking look. It was the third time she was surprised and most of those times were because of him. "T-the whispering?!"

Everyone turned to him and Levy raised her eyebrows, "what are you talking about? There were no whispers, Natsu."

"Yeah there were," Natsu said. "I heard them."

Lucy's eyes narrowed, " _he can hear the whispers?_ "

"I didn't hear them," Wendy said.

"Neither did I," Gray agreed.

"What were the whispers saying?" Juvia asked.

Natsu nodded toward Lucy, "they were chanting her name over and over."

Lucy went silent for a moment as she processed the fact that Natsu was able to hear her dead family chanting her name. She thought she was the only person who could. Why could he hear them? However, despite her surprise, she quickly recovered, "I didn't hear any whispers either. Even if there _were_ voices, they were probably chanting 'Luigi'. Maybe that's the name of the Bloody Child."

" _I heard the voices loud and clear…they were chanting your name,_ " Natsu wanted to say, but didn't press on.

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It was nearly ten o'clock by the time everyone had finished eating. Since it was so late, Levy decided to go home, promising Lucy to hang out with her again. It seemed like the two had a lot in common; everyone seemed to like her and wanted her to meet the rest of Fairy Tail, which is the name of their club in Magnolia. Lucy happily agreed and waved as Gajeel escorted Levy home. Gray took Juvia home as well with Wendy tagging along because the Marvell's and the Locksar's lived across the street from each other.

Natsu however, decided the stay and help Lucy clean up.

"You don't have to stay; it's fine!" Lucy, all too nice, exclaimed with a smile, washing the dishes Natsu brought in from the dining room.

"My dad will send me to bed the moment I get home so I might as well stay," he said.

Lucy turned to him, still smiling. Natsu had just finished bringing in everything and was now standing next to her at the sink, washing a plate. "Your name is Natsu, correct?"

Natsu's breath suddenly caught in his throat and he nodded, not trusting his voice. It was the first time she said his name…it was like a prayer.

"Is there any reason why you don't believe in the Bloody Child Legend? I know you said you didn't because you didn't think that one child would kill her entire family, but besides that."

Natsu shrugged, "I just find it ridiculous. I was raised in a family where we all cherished one another for who we are and protected each other with our lives and our bonds. Hearing a child murder his family, especially on Christmas, is ridiculous."

Lucy hummed, smiling, "your dad must've raised you well then."

"Actually no," Natsu said, but then took that back, "well, yeah I guess. Don't get me wrong, he's the most amazing dad ever, but Makarov, who's my adoptive grandpa, taught me and all my friends that."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, we all practically live at the Fairy Tail club here in Magnolia. You know, you should join," he smiled at her. "You could bring your friends too."

"Oh, I don't have any friends," Lucy replied casually, "but yeah, I'd love to join."

"You don't have any friends?!" Natsu exclaimed. The shocked look on his face must've made quite an impression because he was suddenly hearing an angel sing, but it was really just her cute laugh again, working its magic by turning him to goo.

"It's no big deal, Natsu." Oh gosh, she said his name again. "I've been alone all my life; my mom and dad died when I was little. You and your friends' company tonight was a rather nice change, but I'm used to be alone."

That was a lie and they both knew it: the last part drifted off into a sad mumble. It was hard to catch – she was a good actress – but it didn't get by him.

"Nu uh," Natsu shook his head, drying his hands with a towel. "This isn't happening anymore. Tomorrow morning I'm taking you to Fairy Tail."

Lucy blinked before laughing at him, "you seem determined!"

"I am!" He smiled right back, "it makes me sick that you've been alone most of your life. Consider me your first friend!"

Lucy laughed again, "okay, Natsu! You're my first friend!"

"It's an honor!" He laughed with her.

Suddenly, being around Lucy was addicting. He found himself staying at her apartment later than his curfew allowed; he knew his dad was going to ground him when he got home, but for some reason, Natsu found out that it was worth it. The attraction was suddenly worse when it should be going away, but oddly, he didn't mind at all, which is totally out of character for him. Even after this thought, Natsu found out that he still didn't mind.

secretly, he wished the attraction wouldn't stop…but despite the fact that she had him wrapped around her finger, there was still something strange about Lucy, the whispering, the bodies, and how she managed to save Levy's life…

Just what exactly _is_ the Bloody Child Legend?

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 **Guys! Guess what?! I** _ **finally**_ **found the "Rave Master" manga! I've been looking for it for almost a year and I finally found it! I also wanna see the anime – I heard that it was stopped because of some issue, but I've seen some clips and I wanna watch it anyway. If you know where I could watch the anime, I would appreciate it if you told me. Also, I prefer the dub version, but if there's no dub and just sub, I'll take it anyway.**

 **-zEllie**


	4. Chapter 3

**Oh it feels so good to sit down and write! I've been so busy! So, instead of that oneshot, I'm jumping right into Bloody Child because I lost my inspiration for that oneshot XD.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail**

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The Bloody Child (Ch. 3)

Just as Natsu had promised, the next morning, he was knocking on Lucy's door; he couldn't wait to take her to Fairy Tail and meet the rest of his friends. When she had opened the door, the blonde was fully dressed, but in the midst of brushing her teeth. She smiled and beckoned him to come in.

"Good morning, Lucy!" Natsu greeted happily to her. She had put her finger up to signal to give her a moment before going to the bathroom to rinse her mouth.

"Good morning!" She called back. "I need to put on my makeup and then I'm ready to go. Sorry I'm not ready…"

"You're fine," he replied following her to the bathroom. "There's no rush."

As Natsu leaned against the doorframe, watching her drag a black pencil under her eyes, his own eyes began to leave her hands at her face and slowly travel down her body. Since her back was to him, he couldn't get caught.

He began to blush and a warm gooey feeling settled within his stomach. She was really pretty; he couldn't deny that. He really wanted to get to know her better.

He bit his lip, his blush getting redder.

"Okay, I'm ready."

He blinked back to reality; Lucy was looking at him with the smell of her perfume that she just put on in the air. Natsu sniffed quietly: vanilla and roses…

"Alright, let's go. It's not that far."

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Lucy seemed to fit in perfectly at Fairy Tail. Levy and Wendy were happy to see her and helped introduce her to everyone. The mysterious blonde seemed to like it there and everyone seemed to like her.

Time seemed to fly, but the day seemed very short and the sun was beginning to set; it was time for Lucy to go.

"Do you really have to go?" Natsu groaned, walking her out of guild.

"Yeah," Lucy answered, "I had a lot of fun though. Thank you so much for bringing me here, Natsu." She smiled warmly at him as her golden hair flowed around her like sunrays from her sunny face.

Natsu felt the heat rise in his cheeks and his heart fell to the pit of his stomach. "S-sure, n-no problem at all. I'm glad you had fun."

She giggled, "I did."

Natsu awkwardly swallowed, trying not to make a fool of himself in front of the girl he was beginning to crush on, "s-so, do you wanna come to the guild later this week? Say, S-Saturday?"

The smile dropped from her face like a fallen angel. "Oh no, not Saturday. I'm busy every Saturday with my researching with the Bloody Child Legend."

"I see, but maybe sometime later this week? You can come anytime and you don't live that far away. You can send me a text if you want me to pick you up sometime."

"I don't have your number," Lucy replied, "but yes, I will be back soon."

Natsu blinked, his heart rising from the pit of his stomach, to his throat, straining his voice, "d-do you _want_ my number?"

Lucy nodded, "of course! You're really fun to talk to!"

Natsu bit his lip, typing his number into his phone before handing it back to her. "Y-you can text me anytime."

"Okay."

Lucy suddenly took a different turn away from her house then, leaving Natsu following confusedly. "Uh, where are we going?" He asked.

"Oh! Sorry, I should've told you that I'm not heading home. I'm meeting a really old friend for dinner tonight. That's why I had to leave."

"I see. Well, I can walk you to the restaurant if you want."

"No, it's okay. It's just around the corner; I've got it from here. Thank you for walking me this far though," Lucy smiled at him.

Her smile turned him to goo, but Natsu insisted on walking her the rest of the way to keep her safe. Lucy couldn't refuse and let him do so.

They walked the rest of the way in peaceful silence, enjoying each others company. It seemed too short for Natsu though, because they had pulled into the restaurant and Natsu knew that it was time for him to leave.

"This is the place, right?" He asked her.

Lucy nodded, "yes. My friend is right over there."

The woman Lucy had pointed at had dirty blonde, puffy hair, but she was still just as pretty at Lucy was…well, maybe not as pretty in Natsu's opinion. Lucy had waved at her and her friend had waved back, but not before a disapproving frown appeared on her face. Natsu caught that, but didn't question it.

"Alright, Natsu," Lucy smiled, turning back to him, "I'll see you later."

Natsu rubbed the back of his neck; he didn't want to leave, "t-text me…l-later?"

"Of course!" Lucy smiled and then she waved, repeating her previous sentence, "I'll see you later."

Natsu waved back, a sad smile forming on his lips, "see you, Lucy."

He was gone.

Lucy took a deep breath before walking across the room and taking a seat across from her cousin.

"It's been a while, Lucy," the darker haired blonde greeted.

She smiled back, "it's good to see you, Michelle."

The smiles didn't last very long; a frown appeared on Michelle Lobster's face. "Who was the man you came in with?"

"A friend," Lucy responded in monotone.

Before Michelle could reply, a waiter came by with their food. Lucy raised her eyebrows as her dinner was set in front of her.

Michelle smiled, "I know your favorite meal; I went ahead and ordered for you."

Lucy thanked her before blowing on her potato soup to cool it off.

As soon as the waiter left, Michelle became serious again, "I thought we agreed no friends."

"I know, but I can't just…" Lucy trailed off, sighing, "they're all so nice…"

"All? There's more people you've become friends with? Lucy-"

"The no friends rule was never your decision – it was mine."

Michelle argued back, "but we both agreed, Lucy: since you're going to die, no friends should have to mourn over you."

"I thought you didn't want me to die."

"Well, you just keep going back to that mansion. One day, I know that you won't come out of it and I've tried everything to convince you to forget about the past."

"I can't, Michelle. I just _can't!_ It's all my fault! I _need_ to fix it!"

"Dying won't bring back either of our families, Lucy, and I told you," she reached across the table to grab a hold of Lucy's hands, "I don't blame you for what happened that night."

Lucy simply sighed. "You know, even though both our families are dead, I'm really glad you were sick with the flu that Christmas and had to stay home. If you weren't here, Michelle, I wouldn't know where I would be."

Michelle smiled, "me too."

The mood picked up after that good note. The two girls enjoyed each other's company and the meal, talking about anything that had come to mind. After a while, Michelle brought Natsu back into the conversation.

"You know, I think he likes you," she said.

Lucy let her breath out in a puff, "don't be ridiculous. We met last night; he's just being friendly."

"I don't know, Lucy," Michelle disagreed, "I could see the way he was looking at you. He's nervous around you; he likes you."

Lucy just shook her head though, "highly doubt it…he's suspicious of me. I could tell last night at dinner."

"Suspicious?"

The blonde nodded, "I told you the story of how I met them…Natsu is suspicious of how and why I was at the mansion; how and why I know everything about it."

"Nobody else is suspicious? Just him?"

"Yes, I was concerned too, but then he said something that shocked me."

"What?"

Lucy was silent for a moment before leaning in closer, "Natsu can _hear the whispers_."  
Michelle's eyes widen, " _what?_..."

"I-I don't know why or how?" Lucy shook her head, "but he can hear our dead families whisper my name. No one else in the group could hear them, only Natsu."

Michelle blinked, "why?"

Lucy shook her head, "I don't know…but he's suspicious."

Michelle leaned back against her chair with her arms crossed. She was silent at first before speaking one word: "interesting."

Lucy nodded, "yes, very interesting…I don't know what it means, but…I think Natsu might have something to do with this…"

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 **Did you guys enjoy the eclipse?! I thought it was amazing! Anyway, I hoped you enjoyed that chapter, I'm sorry it's so late….still busy…I'll try to get chapter up as soon as I can. Speaking of which, "Little Red Riding Hood" will be next.**

 **-zEllie**


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